Da hai dao

The movie opens and cannon balls sink Ti Lung's ship. He and his crew swim to the British ship and have a swashbuckling pirate fight. They take over the ship but it is sinking too. They seek repairs and hope to hide that they are pirates. Ashore, Fan Mei-Sheng laughs as he walks to his execution, as any great man would! Yue Fung suggests taking him to Macau to collect the bounty. Either way, he escapes.

First, let's hear it for the bit players. These actors were on the Shaw Brothers set virtually every day for about fifty years.. Take notice of the actor Sai Gwa-Pau, 1918 to 2001 with 798 film credits. I call him "Over Bite". He played "Cocky-So" in all the old Wong Fei Hung movies. Also Gam Tin-Chue 1957 to 1987 had 417 credits yet I never heard of him and do not recognize him.

Shaw Brothers was known for making movies on indoor sets. When they took the crew outdoors it always seemed to be under the heat of the midday sun, judging by the shadows. In this movie the crew got to cool off in the surf between takes. I enjoyed all the fight sequences on the beach. The moves were creative, never repetitive, and had various weapons added. There was no attempt at continuity with the color of the sky and sea or clouds but I'll let that pass.

I rate this as above average and recommend it for all fans of martial arts movies of the golden age from 1967 to 1984.